thieuster
Active Member
Good afternoon. Well, in my part of the world at least (Europe).
As per title: My name is Menno. My English is far from perfect, so please bear with me.
I am new on this forum and a Laser newby as well. To be more correct: my son sails a Radial since the beginning of this season (started in March). I sail wooden keelboats and do some off-shore sailing with friends. And when I come to think about it: all those boats are designed in The Netherlands, so I suppose not commonly known around the world.
After sailing a hand-me-down Optimist 'till he was 14, he changed to a Dutch design dinghy called a Splash. Again, a third/fourth/fifth-owner boat. In that boat, he won the National competition. So when he switched to the Laser, we bought him a new one: # 212xxx; fresh from the box, so to speak.
After rigging the boat according to the manual, I quickly started changing a lot of things, all within the class rules. APS, Rooster Sailing and UK's South East Sailboats provided me with tons of (YouTube) info. All lines are spliced now - and have brighter colours (easier to see-and-grab on the water), I mounted the clam cleat with the becket for the elastic cord at the back and bigger blocks on the small plate behind the mast.
So far, things are pretty positive. After a slow Spring (due to school commitments), we decided to attend as many venues as possible. So we went to the Warnemuender Woche in Rostock (Germany, near the Polish border), the UK Laser Open in Plymouth and -unexpectedly- he was allowed to participate at the Under 19 World Championship in Kiel. With less than 6 months Laser sailing under the hull of his boat, he managed well, I think (#2 and #5 in two of the eleven WC event's races).
There are however a few questions left...
First, we use a 2013 Honda CR-V with a trailer to travel to the venues. Hard to believe when you're in the US or Can: Honda's are very thin on the ground here in Europe! I am looking for a pic etc of a Honda with a Laser on the roof bars! And / or your experiences! Sometimes it is more convenient to haul the boat on the roof instead of towing it. The roof bars on a Honda are pretty close together, I was wondering if there's a solution to prevent a 'seesaw effect' when driving...
Second question - and it is planning a long way ahead: Next year's the Under19 World Championship is in Kingston, Canada. Despite the travel distance and the costs, we (my wife and myself) are not negative about a trip + holiday to Canada, including the WC. We haven't informed my son yet. It's what you call 'pencilled in' and not in writing yet. In the meantime, I would like to know as much as possible about Kingston, boat charter, do's and don'ts, tips etc.
Here one pic, taken by another father, during the first day of 'Kiel' before the first signal of the day.
Menno
As per title: My name is Menno. My English is far from perfect, so please bear with me.
I am new on this forum and a Laser newby as well. To be more correct: my son sails a Radial since the beginning of this season (started in March). I sail wooden keelboats and do some off-shore sailing with friends. And when I come to think about it: all those boats are designed in The Netherlands, so I suppose not commonly known around the world.
After sailing a hand-me-down Optimist 'till he was 14, he changed to a Dutch design dinghy called a Splash. Again, a third/fourth/fifth-owner boat. In that boat, he won the National competition. So when he switched to the Laser, we bought him a new one: # 212xxx; fresh from the box, so to speak.
After rigging the boat according to the manual, I quickly started changing a lot of things, all within the class rules. APS, Rooster Sailing and UK's South East Sailboats provided me with tons of (YouTube) info. All lines are spliced now - and have brighter colours (easier to see-and-grab on the water), I mounted the clam cleat with the becket for the elastic cord at the back and bigger blocks on the small plate behind the mast.
So far, things are pretty positive. After a slow Spring (due to school commitments), we decided to attend as many venues as possible. So we went to the Warnemuender Woche in Rostock (Germany, near the Polish border), the UK Laser Open in Plymouth and -unexpectedly- he was allowed to participate at the Under 19 World Championship in Kiel. With less than 6 months Laser sailing under the hull of his boat, he managed well, I think (#2 and #5 in two of the eleven WC event's races).
There are however a few questions left...
First, we use a 2013 Honda CR-V with a trailer to travel to the venues. Hard to believe when you're in the US or Can: Honda's are very thin on the ground here in Europe! I am looking for a pic etc of a Honda with a Laser on the roof bars! And / or your experiences! Sometimes it is more convenient to haul the boat on the roof instead of towing it. The roof bars on a Honda are pretty close together, I was wondering if there's a solution to prevent a 'seesaw effect' when driving...
Second question - and it is planning a long way ahead: Next year's the Under19 World Championship is in Kingston, Canada. Despite the travel distance and the costs, we (my wife and myself) are not negative about a trip + holiday to Canada, including the WC. We haven't informed my son yet. It's what you call 'pencilled in' and not in writing yet. In the meantime, I would like to know as much as possible about Kingston, boat charter, do's and don'ts, tips etc.
Here one pic, taken by another father, during the first day of 'Kiel' before the first signal of the day.
Menno
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